Heat exchanger, outdoor unit and refrigeration apparatus

ABSTRACT

A heat pump chiller includes a casing having a compressor, etc. inside thereof and four flat-plate shaped air heat exchangers disposed on side surfaces of the casing and extending vertically. Two air heat exchangers constitute a first heat exchanger body and a second heat exchanger body. Respective heat exchanger bodies are positioned with end parts extending toward outside of the air heat exchangers to be close to each other.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a heat exchanger, an outdoor unit thatincludes the heat exchanger, and a refrigeration apparatus that includesthe outdoor unit, and particularly relates to structures for a heatexchanger.

BACKGROUND ART

As described in Patent Document 1, some conventional refrigerationapparatus such as large chiller apparatus disposed on roofs of buildingsare known. As shown in FIG. 9, an outdoor unit (a) of a heat pumpchiller is known as this sort of chiller apparatus. The outdoor unit (a)includes a box-like casing (c) formed in the shape of a roughrectangular parallelepiped having air suction ports (b) on both sidesthat are opposite to each other, a plurality of heat exchangers (d) eachin the shape of a flat plate that are disposed at the air suction port(b) and disposed inside of the casing (c) and disposed to take the formof an inverted M-shape when viewed from the front, and a fan (f)disposed inside of an air outlet port (e) formed on an upper surface ofthe casing (c).

CITATION LIST Patent Document

PATENT DOCUMENT 1: Japanese Patent Publication No. 2008-202857

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Technical Problem

The heat exchanger (d) of the outdoor unit (a) in a conventional heatpump chiller was disposed to constitute a flat side surface of thecasing (c). Meanwhile, a plurality of the outdoor units (a) can bedisposed in parallel or disposed adjacent to a wall, etc. In this case,it is necessary to secure space of a specified interval around each ofthe outdoor units (a) so that air will be taken in for the heatexchanger (d).

In a case where the heat exchange area of the heat exchanger (d) is tobe increased, it is necessary to increase the length of the heatexchanger (d) longitudinally while keeping the space with the specifiedinterval around the above outdoor unit (a). However, there has been aproblem in which the total area (occupancy area) of the installationarea for the outdoor unit (a) and the area occupied by, for example, thespace between the outdoor unit (a) and other outdoor units (a) areincreased when the heat exchanger (d) is lengthened.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to increase the sizeof a heat exchanger without increasing the occupancy area when a heatexchanger is installed.

Solution to the Problem

First, a first heat exchanger is placed on a both side surface of acasing (11) and includes a first heat exchanger body (21) and a secondheat exchanger body (23) each extending along a side surface of thecasing (11). Each of the first heat exchanger body (21) and the secondheat exchanger body (23) includes linear shaped first and second heatexchanger parts (22) and (24) extending toward outside of the casing(11) so that a middle part forms a top part (20 a) of an obtuse anglepositioned outside of the casing (11) in plan view.

Air outside of the casing (11) flows from outside of the respective heatexchanger bodies (21, 23) through the heat exchanger bodies (21, 23)into the casing (11) in the heat exchanger. Air that has flown in thecasing (11) exchanges heat with refrigerant that flows inside of theheat exchanger bodies (21, 23) while the air passes through the heatexchanger bodies (21, 23).

In a second heat exchanger, the first heat exchanger part (22) and thesecond heat exchanger part (24) of the first heat exchanger areconfigured to be independent of each other, and the first heat exchangerpart (22) and the second heat exchanger part (24) of the respective heatexchanger bodies (21, 23) are positioned so that end parts (22 b, 24 b)forming the top part (20 a) are close to each other.

Air outside of the casing (11) passes through the respective first heatexchanger part (22) and the first heat exchanger part (24) into thecasing (11) in the heat exchanger. The air exchanges heat withrefrigerant that flows inside of the first heat exchanger part (22) andthe second heat exchanger part (24) while the air passes through thefirst heat exchanger part (22) and respective second heat exchanger part(24).

In a third heat exchanger, the first heat exchanger body (21) and thesecond heat exchanger body (23) of the first heat exchanger arepositioned so that end parts (22 a, 24 a) of the first heat exchangerbody (21) and end parts (22 a, 24 a) of the second heat exchanger body(23) are positioned to have a predetermined distance.

In the third heat exchanger, work such as maintenance in the casing (11)is performed from clearance between the end parts (22 a, 24 a) of therespective heat exchanger parts (22, 24) of the first heat exchangerbody (21) and of the respective heat exchanger parts (22, 24) of thesecond heat exchanger body (23).

A first outdoor unit includes any one of the first to third heatexchangers (20) and the casing (11) thereof.

In the outdoor unit, air outside of the casing (11) flows from outsideof the respective heat exchanger bodies (21, 23) through the heatexchanger bodies (21, 23) into the casing (11). Air that has been flownin the casing (11) exchanges heat with refrigerant that flows in theheat exchanger bodies (21, 23) while the air passes through the heatexchanger bodies (21, 23).

A second outdoor unit is the first outdoor unit in which the casing (11)and the heat exchanger (20) together form an outdoor unit body (1B), andmultiple ones of the outdoor unit body (1B) are provided in the outdoorunit to be arranged in parallel in a width direction.

In the outdoor unit, given space is secured between a plurality ofoutdoor unit bodies (1B) and, in addition, the heat exchanger (20) isenlarged.

A third outdoor unit is the first or second outdoor unit in which thecasing (11) includes a fan mechanism (13) for providing air to the firstheat exchanger body (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23) in thearea that is enclosed by the first heat exchanger body (21) and thesecond heat exchanger body (23).

In the outdoor unit, the fan mechanism (13) takes in air outside of thecasing (11) through the first heat exchanger body (21) and the secondheat exchanger body (23) into the casing (11). The fan mechanism (13)releases air taken in the casing (11) outside of the casing (11)

A fourth outdoor unit is one of the first to third outdoor units inwhich an air guide part (35) is disposed outside of the first heatexchanger body (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23) to feed airto the respective heat exchanger bodies (21, 23).

In the outdoor unit, air outside of the casing (11) is guided to the airguide part (35), passes through the first heat exchanger body (21) andthe second heat exchanger body (23) into the casing (11).

The refrigeration apparatus includes one outdoor unit (1A) of one of thefirst to fourth outdoor units.

Advantages of the Invention

In the first heat exchanger, the first heat exchanger body (21) and thesecond heat exchanger body (23) include the first and second heatexchanger parts (22) and (24) extending toward outside of the casing(11) so that the heat exchanger bodies (21, 23) can be enlarged usingclearance (space) required to provide air to the heat exchanger bodies(21, 23).

In the second heat exchanger, the first heat exchanger part (22) and thesecond heat exchanger part (24) of the heat exchanger bodies (21, 23)are independent of each other so that mounting work can be made easy.

In the third heat exchanger, the end parts (22 a, 24 a) of the firstheat exchanger body (21) and the end parts (22 a, 24 a) of the secondheat exchanger body (23) have given clearance so that maintenance workcan be conducted through the clearance. This can increase maintenanceperformance.

In the first outdoor unit, the first heat exchanger body (21) and thesecond heat exchanger body (23) include the first heat exchanger part(22) and the second heat exchanger part (24) extending toward outside ofthe casing (11) so that the heat exchanger (20) can be enlarged whilesecuring given space around the outdoor unit.

In the second outdoor unit, a plurality of outdoor unit bodies (1B) areplaced in parallel so that air can be provided to the heat exchanger(20) without increasing total area (occupancy area) of installation areaof the outdoor unit body (1B) and clearance between two outdoor units(1B) even if the heat exchanger (20) is enlarged. This allows the heatexchanger (20) to be enlarged using the clearance (space) outside of theheat exchanger while securing air flow to the heat exchanger (20). As aresult, the heat exchanger (20) can be enlarged without increasingoccupancy area when installing the outdoor unit body (1B).

In the third outdoor unit, since the casing (11) is provided with thefan mechanism (13) in the area enclosed with the first heat exchangerbody (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23), air outside of thecasing (11) can be securely provided to the heat exchanger bodies (21,23). This enables to conduct heat exchange between provided air and theheat exchanger parts (22, 24).

In the fourth outdoor unit (1A), since the air guide part (35) isprovided outside of the casing (11), air outside of the casing (11) canbe provided into the casing (11) without gap in a case where a pluralityof connected outdoor unit bodies (1B) are installed.

In the refrigeration apparatus, the heat exchanger (20) can be enlargedwhile securing given space around the outdoor unit (1A).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an outdoor unit of aheat pump chiller according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an outdoor unit bodyof a heat pump chiller according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2(A) is aperspective view illustrating an appearance of the outdoor unit body.FIG. 2(B) is a perspective view illustrating an inner structure of theoutdoor unit body.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view illustrating an outdoor unit accordingto a first embodiment from above.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view illustrating an outdoor unit accordingto a first variation of a first embodiment from above.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view illustrating an outdoor unit accordingto a second variation of a first embodiment from above.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view illustrating an outdoor unit accordingto a second embodiment from above.

FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view illustrating an outdoor unit accordingto a third embodiment from above.

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view illustrating an outdoor unit accordingto a fourth embodiment from above.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an outdoor unit of aheat pump chiller according to a conventional example.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments will be specifically described with referenceto the drawings.

Embodiment 1

A refrigeration apparatus according to a first embodiment constitutes aheat pump chiller (10) as shown in FIG. 1. The heat pump chiller (10)includes an outdoor unit (1A) disposed on the roof of a structure suchas a building to cool or heat water for air conditioner to be suppliedto the structure. The outdoor unit (1A) includes three outdoor unitbodies (1B) and the three outdoor unit bodies (1B) are placed inparallel in the width direction.

The heat pump chiller (10) comprises a refrigerant circuit (not shown)and a casing (11) with its inner space made as a machine room (14) asshown in FIG .2.

The casing (11) includes an outer wall formed in the shape of a generalhexagon in plan view when the casing is seen from above, an upper wall(11 a) and a lower wall (11 b) formed on the outer end and on the lowerend, respectively, of the outer wall in the shape of a general hexagon.The upper wall (11 a) of the casing (11) is formed in the shape of ageneral hexagon and air injection ports are formed on three locationswhich are not shown. A filter (12) for covering the air injection portfrom outside of the casing (11) is attached to each air injection port.A blower fan (13) is provided on the inside of the casing (11) of theair injection port.

The blower fan (13) is an axial flow fan (e.g. propeller fan) andconstitutes a fan mechanism. Three blower fans (13) are respectivelydisposed at three air injection ports so that air taken from outside ofthe casing (11) into the casing (11) blows outside again through the airinjection ports.

A hole part is formed in each of four outer wall sides to extend fromthe lower wall (11 b) to the upper wall (11 a) of the casing (11) at theboth sides along the longitudinal direction of the casing (11). A heatexchanger (20) is formed in the four hole parts.

The shorter sides of the casing (11) constitutes a front part and a backpart. In the front part, a hole part for maintenance is formed to extendfrom the lower wall (11 b) to the upper wall (11 a) of the casing (11)so that maintenance of a compressor (31) etc. in the casing (11) can beperformed. A door (15) for maintenance described later is provided inthe hole part for maintenance. The back part at the shorter sides of thecasing (11) constitutes a back wall (16).

The heat exchanger (20) is made of four air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24,24). The air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) are fitted into the fourholes respectively. That is, the respective air heat exchangers (22, 22,24, 24) constitute the outer wall of the casing (11).

The air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) are formed in the shape of aflat plate as shown in FIG. 3, and is made of air heat exchangersextending linearly in plan view. Two of the four air heat exchangers(22, 22, 24, 24) are disposed at each side of the casing (11) in thelongitudinal direction. The respective air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24,24) are disposed to extend vertically from the lower wall (11 b) to theupper wall (11 a) of the casing (11). The air heat exchangers (22, 22,24, 24) respectively constitute heat exchangers.

Two heat exchangers (22, 24) placed on one longer side of the casing(11) of the four heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) constitute one firstheat exchanger body (21), and two heat exchangers (22, 24) placed on theother longer side of the casing (11) constitute one second heatexchanger body (23). Specifically, the first heat exchanger body (21) isplaced on the right side of the casing (11) in FIG. 3, the second heatexchanger body (23) is placed on the left side of the casing (11) inFIG. 3, and the first heat exchanger body (21) and the second heatexchanger body (23) are placed opposite to each other.

That is, the first heat exchanger body (21) is made of the first heatexchanger body (22) placed under the casing (11) in FIG. 3 and thesecond heat exchanger body (24) placed above the casing (11). The secondheat exchanger body (23) is made of of the first heat exchanger body(22) placed under the casing (11) and the second heat exchanger body(24) placed above the casing (11) in FIG. 3. The first heat exchangerbody (22) and the second heat exchanger body (24) are composed to beindependent of each other.

The first heat exchanger (22) of the first heat exchanger body (21) andthe first heat exchanger (22) of the second heat exchanger body (23) aredisposed so that their crossing point of extending lines make an acuteangle in plan view. The end part (22 a) of the first heat exchanger body(21) and the end part (22 a) of the second heat exchanger body (23)making the acute angle are disposed to have a clearance of some dozensof centimeters to approximately one meter inbetween. That is, the holepart for maintenance is formed between the two end parts (22 a) of thefirst air heat exchangers (22) making the acute angle.

The second heat exchanger (24) of the first heat exchanger body (21) andthe second heat exchanger (24) of the second heat exchanger body (23)are disposed so that their crossing point of extending lines make anacute angle in plan view. The end part (24 a) of the first heatexchanger body (21) and the end part (24 a) of the second heat exchangerbody (23) making the acute angle are disposed to have a clearance ofsome dozens of centimeters to approximately one meter inbetween. Thatis, the back wall (16) is formed between the two end parts (24 a) of thesecond air heat exchangers (24) making the acute angle.

The first heat exchanger (22) of the first heat exchanger body (21) andthe second heat exchanger body (24) are disposed so that the center partof the first heat exchanger body (21) makes a top part (20 a) of anobtuse angle placed outside of the casing (11) in plan view. The firstheat exchanger (22) and second heat exchanger body (24) of the secondheat exchanger body (23) are disposed so that the center part of thesecond heat exchanger body (23) makes a top part (20 a) of an obtuseangle placed outside of the casing (11) in plan view.

In the first heat exchanger body (21), the end part (22 b) of the firstair heat exchanger (22) forming the top part (20 a) and the end part (24b) of the second heat exchanger (24) are positioned to be close to eachother. In the second heat exchanger body (23), the end part (22 b) ofthe first air heat exchanger (22) forming the top part (20 a) and theend part (24 b) of the second heat exchanger (24) are positioned to beclose to each other.

That is, the end part (22 b) of the first air heat exchanger (22) andthe end part (24 b) of the second heat exchanger (24) form one of thetop parts (20 a) of the outer wall each formed in the shape of a generalhexagon in plan view. The blower fan (13) is provided in an areaenclosed with the first heat exchanger body (21) and the second heatexchanger body (23) in plan view when viewed from above the casing (11).

The door (15) for maintenance is formed to be a door that can be openedand closed. The door (15) for maintenance is provided to extend from thelower wall (11 b) to the upper wall (11 a) of the casing (11) in theopening for maintenance provided in the front part of the shorter sideof the casing (11). Thus, workers can conduct maintenance of acompressor (31), a water heat exchanger (32) and an electric componentbox (not shown) in the casing (11) after opening the door (15) formaintenance.

A compressor (31) for compressing refrigerant, a water heat exchanger(32) for adjusting temperature of water for air conditioner to beadjusted, an expansion valve (not shown) and an electric component box(not shown) are provided in the casing (11). The compressor (31), awater heat exchanger (32), a 4-way valve (not shown), an expansion valve(not shown) and the air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) constitute arefrigerant circuit of a vapor compression type. The refrigerant circuitcan cool or heat water for air conditioner by switching the 4-way valve(not shown) to circulate refrigerant in a reversible way. What isprovided in the casing (11) is not limited to the compressor (31), thewater heat exchanger (32), the expansion valve (not shown) and theelectric component box (not shown). The electric component box (notshown) contains electric boards, wires, etc. for controlling operationof a heat pump chiller (10).

Operation

Hereinafter, operation of the first embodiment is described.

First, as shown in FIG. 3, the heat pump chiller (10) takes in airoutside of the casing (11) through the first heat exchanger body (21)and the second heat exchanger body (23) into the casing (11) when theblower fan (13) is operated. At this time, air outside of the casing(11) is taken in the casing (11) from clearances respectively formedbetween the first heat exchanger bodies (21) and the second heatexchanger bodies (23) of adjacent outdoor unit bodies (1B) through theair heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24). When outside air is taken, the airabsorbs heat from refrigerant in the air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24,24) to be heated. Air taken in the casing (11) of each of the outdoorunit bodies (1B) passes through the blower fan to be released outside ofthe casing (11).

Next, operation of a refrigerant circuit when water for air conditionerin the water heat exchanger (32) is used for cooling water is described.

In the refrigerant circuit, operation of a compressor (31) is startedand the refrigerant is compressed by the compressor (31). The compressedrefrigerant ejected from the compressor (31) flows to the first heatexchanger body (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23). In thefirst heat exchanger body (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23),heat of refrigerant is released to air to heat air taken in the casing(11) when air outside of the casing (11) passes through the air heatexchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) constituting the heat exchanger bodies (21,23). The refrigerant that was released into air to be cooled expands atthe expansion valve and flows into the water heat exchanger (32). In thewater heat exchanger (32), refrigerant absorbs heat from water for airconditioner flowing in the water heat exchanger (32) and water for airconditioner is cooled. The cooled water for air conditioner is fed intothe building. The refrigerant flown out of the water heat exchanger (32)is sucked into the compressor (31) again and is compressed.

Hereinafter, operation of a refrigerant circuit when water for airconditioner in the water heat exchanger (32) is used for heating isdescribed.

In the refrigerant circuit, operation of a compressor (31) is startedand the refrigerant is compressed by the compressor (31). The compressedrefrigerant ejected from the compressor (31) flows into the water heatexchanger (32). In the water heat exchanger (32), refrigerant releasesheat to water for air conditioner flowing in the water heat exchanger(32) and the water for air conditioner is heated. The heated water forair conditioner is fed into the building. The refrigerant flown from thewater heat exchanger (32) is expanded by the expansion valve and thenflows into the first heat exchanger body (21) and the second heatexchanger body (23). In the first heat exchanger body (21) and thesecond heat exchanger body (23), refrigerant absorbs heat from air tocool air taken in the casing (11) when air outside of the casing (11)passes through the air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) constituting theheat exchanger bodies (21, 23). The refrigerant flown out of the airheat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24) is sucked into the compressor (31)again and is compressed.

To conduct maintenance work, workers can stop a heat pump chiller (10),open a door (15) for maintenance and conduct maintenance of thecompressor (31) in the casing (11).

Advantages of Embodiment 1

According to the embodiment 1, since two flat-plate air heat exchangers(22, 24) are positioned to constitute the top part (20 a) of an obtuseangle in plan view, the area of each air heat exchanger (22, 22, 24, 24)can be increased.

Moreover, in the air heat exchanger bodies (21, 23), since end parts (22b, 24 b) extending toward outside of the air heat exchangers (22, 22,24, 24) are placed to be close to each other, air flow can be generatedbetween adjacent outdoor unit bodies (1B) even if a plurality of outdoorunit bodies (1B) are adjacently placed in parallel. This allows eachheat exchanger (22, 24) to be enlarged using the clearance betweenadjacent heat exchanger bodies while securing air flow to the air heatexchangers (22, 24). As a result, the heat exchanger (20) can beenlarged without increasing occupancy area when installing a pluralityof outdoor unit bodies (1B) in parallel.

Moreover, since the heat exchangers (22, 24) of the heat exchangerbodies (21, 23) are independent of each other so that mounting work canbe made easy.

Furthermore, since given clearance is provided between the end parts (22a, 24 a) of the first heat exchanger part (21) and the end part (22 a,24 a) of the second heat exchanger body (23), maintenance work forcompressor (31) , etc. inside the casing (11) can be conducted throughthe clearance. As a result, maintenance performance of the heat pumpchiller (10) can be increased.

In the casing (11), since the casing (11) is provided with the fanmechanism (13) in the area enclosed with the first heat exchanger body(21) and the second heat exchanger body (23), air outside of the casing(11) can be supplied to the air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24)constituting the heat exchanger bodies (21, 23). This allows heatexchange to be securely conducted between provided air and the air heatexchangers (22, 22, 24, 24).

Variation 1 of Embodiment 1

Hereinafter, operation of the first variation of first embodiment isdescribed. In the first variation, an air guide plate (35) shown in FIG.4 is provided outside of the heat pump chiller (10) of the firstembodiment.

Specifically, in the first variation, an air guide plate (35) isprovided outside of the casing (11) of the heat pump chiller (10).

The air guide plate (35) is made of a plate component formed in theshape of a flat plate. The air guide plate constitutes an air guidepart. Two the air guide plates (35) are provided between adjacentoutdoor unit bodies (1B). Specifically, one air guide plate (35) isprovided between the first heat exchanger body (21) and the second heatexchanger body (23) adjacent to each other.

When the blower fan (13) of the outdoor unit body (1B) starts operation,air flows toward the outdoor unit body (1B) as shown in FIG. 4. Thisflow of air is separated at the air guide plate (35) and is guided toone side and the other side of adjacent outdoor unit bodies (1B).

Since the air guide plate (35) that guides flow of air taken into thecasing (11) is provided in the first variation, air outside of thecasing (11) can be supplied to the casings (11) of adjacent outdoor unitbodies (1B) without gap. Other configurations, operation, and advantagesare the same as those in the first embodiment.

Variation 2 of Embodiment 2

Hereinafter, operation of the second variation of the first embodimentwill be described with reference to the drawings. The second variationis different from the first embodiment in the structure of the door (15)for maintenance of the heat pump chiller (10).

Specifically, the door (40) for maintenance in the second variation hasa given thickness and is formed in the shape of a box with its insideformed hollow to be formed as a door that can be opened and closed tothe inside of the casing (11) as shown in FIG. 5. The door (40) formaintenance has a lid material (not shown). The door (40) formaintenance is formed to be integrated with an electric component box(not shown) and contains electric board, wires, etc. for operating aheat pump chiller (10). This means that the door (40) for maintenancecorresponds to the electric component box (not shown) contained in thecasing (11) of the first embodiment. This door (40) for maintenance isprovided from the lower wall (11 b) to the upper wall (11 a) of thecasing (11) in the opening for maintenance provided in one side part ofthe shorter sides of the casing (11).

Therefore, workers can conduct maintenance of the compressor (31), thewater heat exchanger (32), etc. in the casing (11) after opening thedoor (40) for maintenance. By opening a lid material (not shown) of door(40) for maintenance, maintenance of electric boards, wires, etc.contained inside can be conducted.

Since the door (40) for maintenance formed integrated with the electriccomponent box (not shown) is provided in the second variation, internalspace of the casing (11) can be enlarged. This can increase maintenanceperformance inside the casing (11). The door (40) for maintenance formedintegrated with the electric component box (not shown) can provide morespace in the internal space of the casing (11) corresponding to thespace in which the conventional electric component box (40) wasinstalled. This allows the casing to be made smaller by the space whichwas occupied by the electric component box (not shown) in the casing(11). Other configurations, operation, and advantages are the same asthose in the first embodiment.

Embodiment 2

Hereinafter, a second embodiment will be described with reference to thedrawings.

The second embodiment is different from the heat pump chiller (10) ofthe first embodiment in the first heat exchanger body (21), the secondheat exchanger body (23) and construction of end part of the secondembodiment. The second embodiment will be described regarding itsdifference from the first embodiment.

Specifically, a heat pump chiller (10) of the second embodiment isdisposed so that the second heat exchanger (24) of the first air heatexchanger body (21) and the end part (24 b) of the second heat exchanger(24) of the second heat exchanger body (23) are positioned to be closeto contact with each other as shown in FIG. 6.

In the second embodiment, since the first air heat exchanger body (21)and the end part (24 b) of the second heat exchanger (24) of the secondheat exchanger body (23) are positioned to be close to contact with eachother, the area of the second air heat exchanger (24) of the secondembodiment is larger than the area of the second heat exchanger (23) ofthe first embodiment. This allows the area of the air heat exchanger(24) with respect to installation area of casing (11) to be increased.Other configurations, operation and advantages are the same as those inthe first embodiment.

Embodiment 3

Hereinafter, a third embodiment will be described with reference to thedrawings.

The end part constructions of the air heat exchangers (22, 24) of thefirst heat exchanger body (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23)of the third embodiment are different from the heat pump chiller (10) ofthe first embodiment. The third embodiment will be described regardingits difference from the first embodiment.

Specifically, a heat pump chiller (10) of the third embodiment isdisposed so that the first heat exchanger (22) of the first air heatexchanger body (21) and the end part (22 a) of the first air heatexchanger (22) of the second heat exchanger body (23) are positioned tobe close to contact with each other and the second air heat exchanger(24) of the first heat exchanger body (21) and the end part (24 a) ofthe second air heat exchanger (24) of the second heat exchanger body(23) are positioned to be close to contact with each other as shown inFIG. 7.

A hole part for maintenance, which is not shown, is formed on the lowerpart of the outer wall along the longitudinal direction of the casing(11) so that maintenance of a compressor (31), etc. disposed in thecasing (11) can be conducted. The hole part for maintenance is formedbelow the respective air heat exchangers (22, 22, 24, 24), and extendsfrom the middle portion of the casing (11) in the vertical direction tothe lower wall (11 b). Workers can conduct maintenance of the compressor(31), etc. in the casing (11) from the hole part.

In the third embodiment, since the air heat exchangers (22, 24) of thefirst air heat exchanger body (21) and the air heat exchangers (22, 24)of the second heat exchanger (23) are disposed so that the end parts (22a, 24 a) on which side they contact with each other contact with eachother, the area of the air heat exchanger (22, 22, 24, 24) of the thirdembodiment is larger than the area of the air heat exchanger (22, 22,24, 24) of the first embodiment. This allows the area of the air heatexchanger (22, 22, 24, 24) of the first heat exchanger body (21) and thesecond heat exchanger body (23) with respect to the installation area ofthe casing (11) to be increased. Moreover, maintenance work for thecompressor (31), etc. inside of the casing (11) can be conducted throughthe hole part for maintenance in the lower part of the casing (11).Other configurations, operation, and advantages are the same as those inthe first embodiment.

Embodiment 4

Hereinafter, a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to thedrawings.

This embodiment is different from the heat pump chiller (10) of thefirst embodiment in the structures of the first heat exchanger body (21)and the second heat exchanger body (23). The fourth embodiment will bedescribed regarding its difference with the first embodiment.

Specifically, in the heat pump chiller (10) of the fourth embodiment,first heat exchanger body (21) and the second heat exchanger body (23)is made of one air heat exchanger (25, 26) as shown in FIG. 8.

The air heat exchangers (25, 26) are fitted into hole parts respectivelyformed in the outer wall surfaces of two both sides along thelongitudinal direction of the casing (11). That is, the side surfaces ofthe casing (11) constitutes one air heat exchanger (25, 26). The airheat exchanger (25, 26) form top parts (20 a, 20 a) with one air heatexchanger formed into the shape of a flat plate that is folded in themiddle. The air heat exchanger (25, 26) of the embodiment can be formedonly on opposing sides of the adjacent casings (11, 11). Otherconfigurations, operation, and advantages are the same as those in thefirst embodiment.

Other Embodiments

The foregoing first embodiment to third embodiment of the presentinvention may be changed as follows.

Though three connected outdoor unit bodies (1B) are disposed in thefirst to third embodiments, the present invention is applicable toconnective disposition of two or more outdoor unit bodies (1B).

The foregoing embodiments are merely preferred examples in nature, andare not intended to limit the scope, applications, and use of theinvention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention is useful for refrigeration apparatus including aheat exchanger.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS

-   10 heat pump chiller (refrigeration apparatus)-   1A outdoor unit-   1B outdoor unit body-   11 casing-   13 blower fan (fan mechanism)-   20 heat exchanger-   21 first heat exchanger body-   22 first air heat exchanger (heat exchanger part)-   22 a, 22 b end part-   23 second heat exchanger body-   24 second air heat exchanger (heat exchanger part)-   24 a, 24 b end part-   35 air guide plate (air guide part)

1. A heat exchanger which is placed on a both side surface of a casingand includes a first heat exchanger body and a second heat exchangerbody each extending along a side surface of the casing, wherein each ofthe first heat exchanger body and the second heat exchanger bodyincludes linear shaped first and second heat exchanger parts extendingtoward outside of the casing so that a middle part forms a top part ofan obtuse angle positioned outside of the casing in plan view.
 2. Theheat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein the first heat exchangerpart and the second heat exchanger part are configured to be independentof each other, and the first heat exchanger part and the second heatexchanger part of the respective heat exchanger bodies are positioned sothat end parts forming the top part are close to each other.
 3. The heatexchanger according to claim 2, wherein the first heat exchanger bodyand the second heat exchanger body are positioned so that end parts ofthe first heat exchanger body and end parts of the second heat exchangerbody are positioned to have a predetermined distance.
 4. An outdoor unitcomprising the casing and the heat exchanger of any one of claims 1 to3.
 5. The outdoor unit according to claim 4, wherein the casing and theheat exchanger together form an outdoor unit body, and multiple ones ofthe outdoor unit body are provided in the outdoor unit to be arranged inparallel in a width direction.
 6. The outdoor unit according to claim 4,wherein the casing includes a fan mechanism for providing air to thefirst heat exchanger body and the second heat exchanger body in the areathat is enclosed by the first heat exchanger body and the second heatexchanger body.
 7. The outdoor unit according to claim 4, wherein an airguide part is disposed outside of the first heat exchanger body and thesecond heat exchanger body to feed air to the respective heat exchangerbodies.
 8. A refrigeration apparatus, comprising an outdoor unitdescribed in claim 4.